So what happens in the summer if Mario is as positive an addition to the first 11 as his first appearance indicates he could be - do we really expect them to come up with the 30 million to make him a permanent signing?

continental skills wrote:So what happens in the summer if Mario is as positive an addition to the first 11 as his first appearance indicates he could be - do we really expect them to come up with the 30 million to make him a permanent signing?

If Inter would allow a dodgy payment structure then yes.

We put £24 million into Arnautovic so £30 million into a player Sullivan can brag about (£45 million player, Euro’s winner etc) is plausible.

continental skills wrote:So what happens in the summer if Mario is as positive an addition to the first 11 as his first appearance indicates he could be - do we really expect them to come up with the 30 million to make him a permanent signing?

Why not? We bid 40 odd million for Lacazette a few years back

In all seriousness, if he works out as we hope I'm sure we'll come to an agreement with Inter

We'll offer his price over 5 years...theyll be happy to be able to say they're recouping most of what they paid, we'll be able to say we've broken our transfer record. Everyone saves face... but we ultimately end up with a top player

Aceface wrote:Does appear from what is known that if there was an actual desire to establish ourselves as one of the clubs around the Europa spots – rather than just to talk about it but do the precise opposite in actions – over the course of six months we could comfortably have assembled a central midfield right now of Wilshere, Dendoncker and Carvalho for circa £65m.

Not chump change, but only double what we paid for Fonte, Snodgrass and Hughill – bench players all – and young and talented enough not to have to go to the well every summer to buy the next punt or patch up.

Desperately need to switch to a view of recruitment that involves a longer time horizon than muddling through to the next tv payment in a year's time.

It depends on the true willingness to spend money.

In previous years the money has gone in at a reasonable rate. This year there is no net investment. It's difficult to see why that would change in the absence of some kind of evidence to the contrary.

Taken at face value, Mario and Dendoncker would set the club back £50m in the summer.

The club would definitely need to recruit another goalkeeper as well as Hart is bound to go.

So where will the money come from?

Potential sales can't be many.

Carroll would certainly be a possible with just 12 months left on his contract and Hernandez is still talking about leaving. After that?

Perhaps the sell off of the likes of Burke, Cullen, Martinez, Haksabanovic, Samuelson to raise a few million.

TV money is just stand still money at best.

We need to have sight of the club's accounts to have some idea what's going on.

continental skills wrote:So what happens in the summer if Mario is as positive an addition to the first 11 as his first appearance indicates he could be - do we really expect them to come up with the 30 million to make him a permanent signing?

It wouldn’t surprise me if the money is there just because they seem to always say the moneys there as an excuse not to spend on others

mumbles87 wrote:It wouldn’t surprise me if the money is there just because they seem to always say the moneys there as an excuse not to spend on others

Couldn’t get x player in because we have 40 tied up in mario

I just see no evidence of them having the money or being willing to pay it. First the Zaza loan, where everyone seemed too keen not to trigger the purchase clause, then the ridiculous Carvalho and Dendonker negotiations. The Joao Mario deal looks to me like another stop-gap. The only signings we seem to have made over the past few seasons have been ones where the selling/loaning club are willing to accept payment over a very long term. Even Lanzini was one that took ages to complete - to me it all smacks of them having spent next year's income already and plugging financial gaps when they are able. But maybe Juventus are prepared to accept a payment schedule spread across the next decade...

I really think we should make a full on push for Toulalan on a short term contract, he may be 34 but he is better than anyone we have in defensive midfield and at least for the moment he is available and at the perfect price for our owners.